The association between some endocrine disruptors and hypospadias in biological samples

Abstract

Hypospadias is a birth defect found in boys in which the urinary tract opening is not at the tip of the penis. The etiology of hypospadias is still unidentified, but endocrine disruptors are considered as one possible cause of hypospadias. In this study, target endocrine disruptor compounds were established for an assay. The target compounds included 5 phthalates (di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), di-n-butyl-phthalate (DBP), mono-(2- ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP), mono-n-butyl-phthalate (MBP) and phthalic acid (PA)), 2 alkylphenols (n-nonylphenol (n-NP) and t-octylphenol (t-OP)) and bisphenol A. The association between these 8 endocrine disruptors and hypospadias was studied. The levels of endocrine disruptors in the urine and plasma of a control group were compared with those of a patient group. DEHP (P = 0.006) and n-NP (P = 7.26e-6) in the urine samples and PA (P = 0.009) and BPA (P = 7.22e-10) in the plasma samples showed a significant association with hypospadias. The levels of endocrine disruptors in the urine and plasma of the mothers were also compared to those of the patients to investigate the metastasis of the endocrine disruptors from the mother. These levels did not, however, show a relationship with hypospadias (R² = 0.001–0.563).

Keywords:

• Endocrine disruptor
• hypospadias
• association
• phthalate
• alkylphenol
• bisphenol A

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant from KIST Institutional Program.